


As The Years Go By

by ahrupe



Category: Hamilton - Miranda (Broadway Cast) RPF
Genre: F/M, In the Heights - Freeform, Reader Insert
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-16
Updated: 2017-02-16
Packaged: 2018-09-24 20:43:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,713
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9785351
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ahrupe/pseuds/ahrupe
Summary: From this prompt: “At new years on midnight for a single minute you possess your soulmate’s body.”The reader is Lin's soulmate. They take their sweet time finding one another.





	

You couldn’t wait. Today was the day. Well, tomorrow was. You were about to find out if you had a soulmate. Maybe it was just a myth, but Grace had said she felt it last year. Only for a minute, but it had been enough to know that someone was out there. You wondered what it would be like to walk around in another person’s body. Did they speak English? You had heard stories of people learning new languages to be able to locate their soulmates. Grace entered her room and shut the door. Should you find somewhere quiet to sit? Were you building yourself up for nothing?   
It was too late, you realized, as your friends began to scream over the blaring music.  
You counted down with them, hoping for the best.

Lin was drunk.   
Not cute drunk. Sloppy, unable to stand up drunk. Leaning against a door frame, he was talking to some woman whose name he couldn’t remember. He knew he wasn’t being too engaging and he didn’t care. He couldn’t stand watching his ex-girlfriend experience that minute of disembodiment, knowing she had a soulmate that wasn’t him.   
They had been dating for almost a year before she bothered to tell him. Everyone counting down around them, he leaned in to kiss her only to see her eyes change color. She looked around, confused, asking him where she was and what she had been doing. He had thought she was playing some kind of sick joke, but after a minute she seemed to right herself. Tears in her eyes, she sat him down to explain that she had finally figured out what town her soulmate lived in. She found him a few weeks later, and he had almost immediately transferred to her university.  
There hadn’t been an official breakup, but Lin knew from the look in her eyes that it was over.   
This year, however, he planned to be so drunk that he wouldn’t even be able to focus on the people who could feel their soulmates.  
He took a sip of his drink when they reached five, determined to finish it.   
At zero, his vision blurred.

_Your eyes slammed shut. Everything was spinning. You knew you were a few drinks in, but it had never felt like this. When you opened your eyes, you were looking down at a woman you didn’t recognize. Turning to leave, your legs gave out. The floor felt nice. It was a bit sticky, and you saw someone’s feet approaching. They bent down to help you up._   
_“Lin, you alright man?”_   
_That wasn’t your name, but you nodded anyways._   
_Getting to your feet was a struggle. You made it to the bathroom, thinking you could do with some quiet._   
_Locking the door behind you, you noticed a mirror above the sink. This was your chance._

_Lin had never sobered so fast in his life._   
_“Y/N,” someone called, “do you want a drink?”_   
_Looking down, Lin noticed definite changes to his body. He felt someone tap his shoulder, and he turned, surprised when he had to look up to find the person’s face._   
_“Y/N, what’s wrong?”_   
_“I, uhh…” Lin trailed off, taking in his surroundings. He couldn’t believe what was happening. He had to have fallen asleep standing up. Whoever had offered the drink pushed it into his hand, shaking their head. He took a swig without thinking, grimacing at the taste. It was basically vodka, and shitty vodka at that. Who thought that was a good idea? What kind of dream party was this?_   
_He stopped. Was this…? But… he was 23! He had given up that dream freshman year, throwing himself into his work. His friends were divided- half having experienced their soulmates for the first time, half trying not to become too cynical. Lin had always considered himself the latter, now he wasn’t so sure._

Lin looked in the mirror. He was pale. But he wasn’t alone. 

Coming back to yourself was not as jarring. One moment you were in a bathroom, steeling yourself for the sight of your soulmate’s face, the next you were instinctively reaching for a mixer to wash down the taste of hard liquor.   
So Lin existed, and he couldn’t hold his alcohol. Not necessarily what you thought you would learn right away, but at least you knew his name. 

-

Another year came and went. People weren’t lying when they said that sophomore year was hard. What time you weren’t studying was devoted to partying with your friends. Lin had been pushed to the back of your mind, but you couldn’t deny you were excited for the new year, if only to see him again for a minute. You hadn’t bothered trying to find him. Lin could’ve been a nickname for all you knew. This year, you were set on finding out as much about him as possible.  
Checking yourself in the mirror, you followed your friends out the door.

Lin was stumped. He got out of his chair, running his hands through his hair in frustration. He had turned down invitations to go out, claiming he was on a roll with the song he was writing, when it was, in fact, the opposite. The words just wouldn’t come together. And while he wouldn’t admit it to himself, he wanted to be sober when midnight hit. Last year had been confusing to say the least, so he needed to remember everything this time.

_At 11:59, you entered your friend’s room, sitting on her bed. Breathing deeply, you readied yourself as you heard the countdown. You opened your eyes to see a mess of papers sprawled across a desk. Lin’s desk, you supposed. This was perfect. Scanning them, you saw places where lines had been scratched out and rewritten dozens of times. There was also an open laptop, but you knew you wouldn’t have time to look through it. The page closest to you caught your eye. At the very bottom, it read, “When our job’s done, as the evening winds/Down to a crawl, son, can I ease my mind-” There were doodles all around it. Lin was clearly struggling. Feeling the seconds tick by, you scrawled down an ending._

_Lin patted the bed. What a smart idea. He had left you in a chair. That was good enough, right? There was no soulmate etiquette that he knew of. Someone knocked on the door and he yelled at them to go away, surprising himself when your voice came out. Was this your room? He opened the closet door to investigate, instead finding a full length mirror._   
_…Holy shit. You were unfairly hot._   
_He leaned in, trying to memorize your face, wondering if he would one day run into you on the street._   
_When he came back to himself, Lin looked down at the new lyric._   
_“She’s brilliant too.”_

-

December 31st, 2004 found you studying abroad in Scotland. You had a tight-knit group of friends, almost all of whom had soulmates. Those who didn’t marveled at your ability to forget. It was hard to explain, but you knew in your heart that one day you would meet. Until then, you weren’t too stressed about finding him, instead choosing to pursue your degree to the fullest and figure out your path in life without definition from someone else. You had agreed to join your friends in a tame celebration, not wanting to miss the one time you felt you should check up on Lin. They all understood.

Lin’s post-college apartment was rough. His roommates fully intended to throw a huge party despite his protests, so he planned to hole up in his room and ride out the new year. He had considered going out, but he was dead tired.  
He jokingly placed papers with problem lyrics on his desk, half hoping they would be finished the next day. There was a shout from the living room, then a thud. Worried someone had passed out, Lin went to go investigate. Of course there would be a fight tonight. When shouting didn’t work, Lin tried to put himself between the two men. Instead of diffusing the situation, he got a swift hit to the jaw that knocked him out cold.

_Blackness._   
_Where was Lin?_

Soft hands stroked your hair, and you sat bolt upright.   
“Hey love, we thought you fell asleep.” You shook your head, too shocked to speak.  
“What happened?”   
“I…” you started, afraid to even ask. “I didn’t see anything. What does that mean? Is he,” your voice waivered, “…is he dead?”  
A stunned silence fell over the room.  
“I’ve never heard of anything like that before,” someone offered, “maybe there was a glitch? No one really knows how this works.”  
“Yeah, maybe.” You didn’t want to cry in front of all your friends, so you found an empty bed and curled up in it. Had you lost Lin before you even got the chance to meet? Suddenly, your nonchalant attitude didn’t seem so appealing. 

Sunlight streamed into his room, waking Lin up. The clock said 11:34. Had he really slept that late? He yawned, heading to the kitchen. The apartment was wrecked, and he was not cleaning it up.  
Wait. Today was January 1st. The events of the night before came flooding back. He touched his jaw, feeling the bruise there.  
He would have to wait.

-

You pushed yourself through the year. Not many people had known about Lin in the first place, so there was no one to tell. How were you supposed to explain the ache you felt every second of every day, knowing you had lost your chance?  
You started dating a guy named Matt, who had no soulmate and was perfectly happy with that fact. He was nice and the sex was good, so you couldn’t complain. It was a way to forget.   
When he started kissing you at 11:45, you didn’t think of Lin.   
When he led you to your bedroom at 11:51, you didn’t think of Lin.  
When he entered you at 11:58, you didn’t think of Lin.  
You weren’t checking the time.

_When you blinked and found yourself alone, you assumed you had blacked out, only you weren’t in your bed. Where the fuck had you ended up?_   
_You got up, looking around. This wasn’t Matt’s apartment. Had you gone home with someone else?_   
_A desk. Good. You grabbed a piece of paper and started to read, unsure of what information you were hoping to find. The handwriting was familiar. You flipped to another page, and another, unwilling to believe your eyes._

_Lin was ready. He was tired of being alone._   
_However, this was a sight he was entirely unprepared for. Unable to register what was happening, he tensed, which Matt took as a cue to speed up._   
_It was too much. Lin had never experienced this sort of pleasure, and he shoved at Matt’s chest in panic._   
_“Stop!” Matt rolled off, looking worried._   
_“Y/N, what’s wrong? Did I do something?”_   
_Lin was shaking. He looked down at a body that was not his own, finally understanding._   
_“I need a minute. Do you- do you have a piece of paper?” he stuttered._   
_“Y/N, please, just tell me what’s going on.”_   
_“Fuck. Nevermind. Just listen to me. You have to remember.” Lin looked into Matt’s eyes and waited for him to nod. “In five minutes, sit me down, and tell me these exact words.”_   
_“What?”_   
_“It will help me. Trust me, okay?” Lin forced himself to speak slowly. “Tell me, ‘Lin says he will wait for you. He will see you next year. You are incredible, and I can’t wait to meet you.’ Can you do that?”_   
_Matt nodded again. “I don’t get it, but if it will help you, of course. Is this a kind of panic attack?”_   
_Lin laughed. “No. It’s just something I need to hear. Thank you.” He brushed the hair out of Matt’s face. “Could you get me a glass of water?”_

When Matt returned, you were sobbing. Repeating Lin’s words only made you cry harder. Matt rubbed your back, thoroughly confused. You couldn’t bring yourself to give him a real explanation, and he was content to think it was stress-related.   
You graduated on time, Matt by your side. At some point your relationship became stagnant. You wanted to move into the city, he found a job across the country- it would all be easier if you were unattached. You ended on good terms. After New Year’s, Matt had known on some level that you would never last, but held on- partially out of hope, partially out of habit. 

Lin couldn’t stop rewriting. The feedback from the conference was almost too useful. Lac told him to chill. He had no chill. His stress only mounted when he found out that they would be able to open in February. A real audience, a real show.  
A perfect way to meet his soulmate. 

-

You had no problem spending the night alone. Neither did Lin.

_You needed to see what he looked like. It had been four years; how did you have no idea? Getting up from the now familiar desk, you practically sprinted through the apartment. A door opened and you shoved Lin’s roommate out of the way, ignoring his protests._   
_Oh, thank god. He was cute._   
_You ran your hands through your hair- it was thick, not too much product._   
_You turned around. Good butt._   
_Heading back, you found a pen and a miraculously unused sheet of paper._

_Across the city, Lin did the same._

-

You looked up at the theatre awning, double-checking the address. Lin’s instructions had been very clear.   
“Um, I’m here to pick up my ticket.” The woman at the box office looked up at you.  
“You’re awfully early. What’s the name?”  
“It’s just under ‘Lin,’ I think.”   
She laughed. “I wondered why he split his comps up that way.”   
You didn’t understand, but you took the ticket, muttering your thanks. Not wanting to seem too eager, you found a secluded spot in the lobby and buried yourself in a book.

Your seat wasn’t front row center, but it was pretty close. The seats around you were occupied by people speaking rapid Spanish to each other. As you read the synopsis, you understood why.   
By the time you reached the cast list, the lights were dimming. A familiar name was at the top, but you didn’t have time to fully register its importance.

Lin took the stage. Your jaw dropped.

You were glued to your seat for a long time after the show ended. The audience began to clear out, and eventually an usher found you.  
“Are you Y/N?”   
He led you backstage, opening a dressing room door.   
“Lin told me to tell you that he would be back in a few minutes. I think he’s greeting his family.” You nodded mutely.   
It felt like hours before you heard footsteps again. The door opened halfway, then stopped. There was a small laugh.   
“I’m sort of afraid to look.”  
You walked to the door, opening it the rest of the way.   
Your eyes locked.   
You weren’t sure who moved first. Lips crashing together, Lin walked you backwards, tangling his fingers in your hair. Your hands roamed under his thin shirt, needing as much contact as possible. When the back of your legs hit the couch you pulled Lin down on top of you, accidentally elbowing him in the stomach. He grunted as you broke apart.   
“Oh my god! Are you okay?”  
Lin looked at you, smiling. Then he laughed. He laughed so loud and so long that you couldn’t help but join in. Tears streaming down his face, Lin placed his hand in yours.  
“There’s a party we’re supposed to be at happening soon. Do we go?”  
“I’m invited?”  
“Of course. I’ve been talking about you for years, haven’t I? Everyone’s probably more excited to meet you than they are to see me.”  
You ran your fingers through his hair, his eyes closing at your touch. Your skin was tingling just from being near him. “Do you feel that?” you whispered.  
“Mhmm.”  
“Can we be late to this party?” Lin pulled you in for a kiss.  
“Definitely.”

**Author's Note:**

> I'm going to hell for writing this, but I'll see you all there! (Not really. Love you all.)


End file.
